Angela Rayner has still not paid her £40,000 stamp duty bill, despite speculation she may be laying the groundwork to challenge Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership.
The former Deputy Prime Minister was forced to step down in September after it was revealed she failed to pay the second home surcharge on a flat she bought in Hove.
The Telegraph reported that sources have said Ms Rayner, who was also the former Housing Secretary, was “on manoeuvres” to replace the Prime Minister in the midst of speculation around his leadership.
It was also speculated that she had offered MPs roles in a future Cabinet.
According to The Telegraph, the Ashton-under-Lyne MP is still yet to pay anything to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Sources close to Ms Rayner say the authority has not yet sent the former Deputy Prime Minister a final bill.
Ms Rayner kept an interest in her Greater Manchester house when she bought the Hove flat for £800,000 earlier this year.
She claimed the new property was her only home.
Angela Rayner is understood to not have paid her stamp duty bill
| PAIt meant she wrongly paid £30,000 in stamp duty instead of the £70,000 she should have paid as the Hove flat was a second home.
Ms Rayner said in her resignation speech in the Commons in September that “I am of course corresponding with HM Revenue and Customs, and it has my full co-operation”.
“There is no excuse not to pay taxes owed, and I will do so,” she added.
It is believed there has not been any further developments and the MP has not paid any money while the investigation continues.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
Angela Rayner is said to be plotting a move against Sir Keir Starmer
| PAMs Rayner’s team insisted she had not done anything wrong and that she had paid all tax that was required of her.
But, after further disclosures, Ms Rayner admitted she made a “mistake”.
A report by Sir Keir’s ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, found the former Deputy Prime Minister had failed to meet the “highest possible standards of proper conduct” by failing to get sufficient tax advice.
Ms Rayner resigned from her Cabinet positions in early September after the publication of the report.
It placed Labour into its worst crisis since winning the General Election last year.
But, during Labour’s annual party conference, Health Secretary Wes Streeting called for her return to the front bench.
Speculation of Ms Rayner plotting a move against Sir Keir comes after a briefing to journalists about a potential leadership challenge by Mr Streeting,
The Prime Minister apologised to the Health Secretary after he said the briefings were a symptom of “toxic culture” in Downing Street.
The Telegraph reported that Ms Rayner had offered roles in a future Cabinet to MPs to gain support in a potential contest for Sir Keir’s position.
Clive Lewis became the first Labour MP to call for Sir Keir to step down, adding Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham should return to Parliament to take the top spot.